Nothing as it seems
by TheMediterraneanRose1536
Summary: After Florence and Rome make a peace agreement, Riario and Leonardo are forced to work together to find the Book of Leaves. The question is, how will they do that without killing each other first? Note: No Leario romance in this story.


Leonardo entered the great De Medici palace, beeing smitten by it once again. The beauty of the ornaments and the detailing were always inspiring to the young _artista_. And now, inside it, Leonardo felt like this visit was of great importance.

As he was slowly moving, he saw a man in black approaching him, and once he realised who it is, he couldn't help but roll his eyes. Pietro Da Vinci came near, and with his usual, unloving tone he said:

" Lorenzo is waiting for you in his study room. What have you done now I wonder?"

Leonardo laughted for a second, but seeing his father's face, he felt the need to respond:" I have perhaps made something good that Lorenzo wants to complement? Ever thought of that, Father?"

The older Da Vinci stared at him dissaprovingly, and a few moments later he bypassed his bastard son, moving in the opposite direction of Leonardo. He disappeared soon after, and the young genius let out a sigh, and then continued walking.

Finally he came infront of the door of the studyroom, and one of the guards let him in. He immediately saw Lorenzo, sitting on his chair by the desk, while an unusually satisfied look was dancing on his face.

" Da Vinci, I have great news." Lorenzo started, not even bothering to say „ Good morning." to his young employee.

" Really? What is it, your Magnificence?"

" There won't be a war between Rome and Florence, Leonardo. The pope and I have come to an agreement!" Lorenzo exclaimed, but seeing the little puzzled look Da Vinci was giving him, he explained further:

" I went to see the Pope a few days ago, and we have finally agreed. There won't be bloodshed, because the two cities are now allies. And as allies, we have to work together..." Lorenzo finished with silence, and Leonardo, still not convinced, asked him:

" That is incredible your Magnificience, but... Rome has been our enemy forever. How can you trust them? They tried to envade us, and you are suddenly friends with them." Leonardo didn't like this at all, but a little voice in his head told him that there is more, and more in this case means worse.

" And, what do I have to do with this? Why have you shared this with your war engineer?"

Lorenzo got up from his chair, getting closer to Da Vinci in his red clothes. When he came near, he put his hands on Leonardo's shoulders, patiently saying:  
" That's the thing, Leonardo. You are part of the agreement... you and Count Riario."

There was a moment of silence, before the artist burst into laughter. When he saw Lorenzo's serious look though, his face adopted a horrified look.

" What? What do you mean? And what do you mean by _Count Riario and me?!"_ he asked, his voice sounding betrayed. Lorenzo looked at him nicely, explaining:" His Holiness and I have both interest in the Book of Leaves. And since you and Count Riario are even more interested in it, we thought that it would be suitable to send you on a search for it."

" _Together?!_ _Riario?!_ You can't do this to me Lorenzo! I want the Book of Leaves for my own personal reasons, not for political ones!" he said loudly and angrily, while the main Medici had an incredibly calm posture.

" Yes, Leonardo, together. It's called allies. The cities are collaborating now, and the Pope and I thought that a clever florentine should go on this mission with a an equally clever roman."

" But, but..." Leonardo wanted to complained more, but Lorenzo silenced him, his voice suddenly strict: " You will go, no buts. It has already been decided. It is your duty as a florentine. You will go to Rome in two days time, where you will join the count. His Holiness will explain you more about it there. You may go." Lorenzo finished, leaving Leonardo feeling completely betrayed and lost. For once more, his mind screamed:" _Together_!?"

And on the lower side of Italy, in the eternal city the man with black hair had the same thought exploding in his mind. When his uncle, or father, has told him about the little trip of him and Da Vinci, Riario couldn't believe his ears.

" Riario, nephew, it has been settled. Prepare for Da Vinci's arrival, make sure to welcome him with open arms." the pope said, ignoring the non believing look on Riario.

" Holy Father, I beg you to reconsider this..."

" Your wishes aren't important, don't you see how this can benefit us? Da Vinci is a genius, it won't be hard to find the Book of Leaves with him by your side. And when he finds it, you can just kill him on the spot, and bring the book here. Yes, why not? Lorenzo may claim war to us then, but without an army, he won't hurt us. Don't you see Riario? This Book could make us invincible." the pope said, clearly deep in his thoughts. And Girolamo couldn't do anything but agree. After a moment of silence, Riario cleared his throat, saying in his usually official tone:

" Your wishes my command, Holiness. Is there anything else?"

The pope smiled with satisfaction, and gave the captain general the sign to go. Riario turned to walk away, but the Pope's voice stopped him:

" Oh yes Riario one more thing."

Girolamo turned, only to see the pope smiling a little:" You know that slave I asked you to borrow me for a night?

" The abyssinian?"

" That one, yes. I want her once more, for tonight."

" Yes, Holy Father." And with that he left, heading to his lodgins, trying to clear his mind. He was still in shock for the news about his and Da Vinci's little trip, and now his favorite slave girl will once again be sent in the claws of the pope. Could it get any worse?

Oh dear Riario, it will get worse.

* * *

**Hello lovely people! **

**I recently watched Da Vinci's Demons and I completely fell in love with it. The show is amazing, I can't wait for season 2! And yeah, don't judge me, but I really like Riario. Don't know why, maybe because he is a very mysterious, layered and incredibly complex character, but I love complicated :D**

**So about the story... I came to this idea today and I had to write it down. I haven't seen many Da Vinci's Demons fanfics so I wanted to share this because it is such an underated show, I don't understand why it's not more popular... anyways I hope you like this, and leave reviews guys! I wanna know what you think :)**


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